CHAPTER THREE.

She was late and she knew she had to hurry up so she wouldn't miss her bus. With a quick brush of her red hair, Samantha applied a little gloss on her lips and smacked it softly before she grabbed her handbag and did a once over on herself in front of her mirror before hurrying out of her room.

Her husband Jace was in the kitchen, already making toast for breakfast and a plate was already set on the mini dining which she was sure was for her.

"Good morning babe"

Jace said to her from the kitchen counter where he was spreading butter on a slice of bread before he turned to the coffee machine to take the cup of coffee he just made. Samantha smiled and dropped her bag on the couch in the living room before she skipped over to him in the kitchen and planted a kiss on his cheek

"good morning love"

she said cheerfully as he dropped five cubes of sugar and poured a substantial amount of cream into the cup of coffee and mixed.

"I know it's your birthday Sam, it's the reason why you're so excited"

Jace told her and she grinned from ear to ear. He never for once forgot her birthday throughout their three years of marriage.

"I know you didn't forget babe"

she replied and sat down to eat as he kept the cup of coffee beside her plate

"just as you like it"

he said referring to the coffee and gave her a kiss on her forehead while she munched on a slice of toast

"Happy birthday baby, I love you" he said with a smile

"Love you too Jace"

she said back as he sat beside her with his own toast and coffee set in his front and joined her to eat.

Silence followed for a while as they ate before Jace checked his wristwatch and saw the time

"aren't you late babe? You'll miss your bus"

he told her and Samantha paused as she sipped her coffee. She completely forgot! She saw the breakfast and forgot she was late for work.

Her bus! She dropped the cup of coffee and grabbed a napkin to clean her mouth. Once she was done, she reapplied her gloss in a hurry and took her bag

"bye babe, see you after work. Love you"

she said in a rush and left the apartment while Jace absentmindedly waved after her while eating.

Soon she was out of the elevator and was running to the bus stop to get into her bus that was about to leave

"wait!!!"

She screamed out as the bus started moving slowly and it came to a halt immediately. She got in breathing heavily and smiled at the bus driver before paying for her fare and went to find a seat in the bus.

Few minutes later, the bus came to a halt at the next bus stop and it was her cue to alight and walk down to her bakery that was only five minutes away. She smiled at the driver again and this time, he smiled back at her before she stepped down from the bus and began walking to her bakery. She let the cool air blow on her face while she got herself prepared for the day at the bakery and finally got there. She had five deliveries to take care of for the day so she needed all the strength and help she could get.. The place seemed serene, the whole bakery was empty and she wondered where the workers were.

Still looking around confusedly, she went into the bakery and went to the counter where she dropped her bag and got her phone out to call the manager who was also her best friend, Olivia. Just as she dialed the number, they began to pour out from the kitchen; all her workers. Some held balloons, another held a placard that said happy birthday boss with a heart beside it and her manager and best friend held a little cake with her picture on it. Samantha couldn't believe her eyes, they did all of these for her. She felt loved and special as she hugged Olivia and the other five workers one after the other and thanked them before they sang a birthday song and popped a party popper over her head then cheered and they all dug into the cake.

"I can't believe you did all of these for me Olivia, thank you"

Samantha told her when they got into the kitchen to start baking for the day and Olivia shrugged

"it's nothing Samantha, what's a bakery without appreciating the owner?"

Olivia replied and Samantha blushed before hugging her again.

"I love you"

"I love you too, now let's get back to work"

Olivia told her and the bakery was opened fully for people to come in.

Samantha and Olivia had been best friends right from when they were little. Samantha lost her parents in a car crash at the age of four so she was taken to an orphanage where she met Olivia who had been there since birth when her mother abandoned her at the orphanage. They weren't exactly best friends from the beginning, it wasn't until they both clocked eight that they began speaking to each other. Samantha was getting bullied for her lunch by the twelve year olds in the orphanage when Olivia intervened and scared them away, she was known as the crazy girl in the eight year olds batch and she proudly bore the given nickname because no one dared do her dirty.

Olivia gave Samantha a long scolding and told her no one would defend her unless she did it herself and Samantha liked her immediately and began to follow her wherever she went and like that, they became inseparable until they clocked eighteen and left the orphanage to start their lives on their own together.

Hours later, it was evening already and time to close up for the day. They had all their orders delivered and they'd had enough customers to call it for the day. Samantha was taking off her apron when Olivia came in and rested against the sink while watching her

"so a birthday party uhn"

she said and Samantha nodded while folding the apron. She knew where this talk was going to due to all that had happened in the past month with Jace.

"So has he changed?"

Olivia asked her and Samantha stopped what she was doing to look at her friend.

"Of course Olivia, he doesn't come in late again and he doesn't drink excessively like he used to, I've told you this many times already. Jace has changed and he concentrates more on his job now"

Samantha said already feeling herself getting a bit pissed. She was a redhead and redheads lose their temper easily.

Olivia sensed she was getting angry already and quickly dropped it

"okay, I'm sorry. I'm just worried about you that's all but if you say you guys are good now, then I'm cool"

she said and Samantha sulked while pouting.

"I hate when we fight"

she said and Olivia chuckled

"that wasn't a fight and just so you know, I'm ready to kick the ass of anyone that messes with you"

Olivia replied and Samantha smiled as they both walked out of the bakery and locked it up.

"I'll be at your place for the party in the next thirty minutes"

Olivia told her and with that, she walked in the opposite direction to her apartment that was fifteen minutes away. Samantha turned around too and headed for the bus stop to meet Jace that was waiting for her and got into the car then kissed him on the lips before pulling back shortly after

"hey babe"

she said and he smiled at her

"how was your day?"

He asked and she nodded with a smile

"it was all good, got more orders and customers"

she said and with that he started the engine and drove off to their place as soft music played in the background of the car, filling the silence between them both.

They got to the house and got in and Samantha was awed at the whole set up for the party. It was obvious that Jace had put a lot of effort into the party and she knew he was just trying to make up for his lapses previously. He was recently working from home so when he began to come in very late at night and drunk sometimes, she couldn't keep up with it anymore and threatened to file for a divorce if he didn't change after she took Olivia's advice to tell him that.

He apologized immediately and promised to change, which he did with obvious changes in him. She was glad he quickly changed and believed it showed her how much he loved her.

After admiring everything, she turned to Jace who was watching her with a smile and ran to hug him with a squeal "

"oh my God, I love it Jace. Thank you so much"

she said excitedly and kissed him deeply.

He kissed her back and carried her to the kitchen counter where he sat her and took his hand to her chin to hold her steady and kiss her as deep as he wanted to.

His hand began to travel down her thigh to the hem of her dress and he dipped his hand inside, rubbing his fingers against her skin teasingly and she moaned from the slight touches there and here because he knew how sensitive she was to skin contact especially if it was brief brushes here and there, he knew just where to have her.

Samantha stopped him immediately and grinned at him

"as much as I want to fuck you senseless right now, I have a birthday party to prepare for and people will be arriving in the next twenty minutes from now. I need a bath and change of clothes"

she said and pecked him on the lips again before she hopped off the counter and took all her things then ran off to the room while Jace just chuckled at how cute she was.

He needed a bath too so he joined her in the bathroom where she was and they smiled at each other as he drew a bath for both of them. Soon they were done and Samantha dressed in a simple black body hug dress with shiny black heels then let her wavy red hair fall down her back. She was breathtakingly beautiful. Jace was dressed in a simple blue t-shirt with a pair of white jeans and a pair of sneakers.

He brushed his hair as he looked at Samantha that was in front of the mirror and whistled

"you look so good babe, I just want to take you here and now. Should we just cancel the party?"

He asked teasingly and she laughed

"of course not Jace, the party is holding and then we can have some fun after"

she replied and he nodded while hugging her from behind and they both stared into the mirror.

"Fun fact, I'm not wearing panties"

Samantha told him in a sexy voice and Jace groaned

"you'll be the death of me woman"

he said and she laughed before she released herself from his hug once she heard the doorbell ring

"I'll get that"

she said and with that, she left the room with Jace right behind.

People began to arrive and the party soon went into full swing. People eating and drinking to their satisfaction while Samantha chatted with her coworkers and Jace was with his friends where they played ridiculous but fun games with each other.

At 2am, they began to leave and soon the whole apartment was empty but really messy. Samantha and Jace laughed at the way their house looked messed up before they fell on the couch

"thanks for this party Jace, I love you"

she said to show her gratitude and he kissed her

"about that no panties, how about we have some fun now?"

He told her and she gave a smug smile before going on her knees and unbuckled his belt then unzipped his jeans

"Then let's have some fun babe"

she said and took his length into her mouth while he released low moans at how good she made him feel.